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MCC Daily Tribune

Wellness Wednesday Week 5: Becoming a Cheerleader in Your Own Head

The relationship you have with yourself is arguably one of the most important ones in your life. Though, for many of us, it is hard work to act as the cheerleader inside our own heads and to challenge automatic negative thoughts and self-invalidating statements. Cheerleading statements are statements that people make to themselves (i.e. self-statements) in order to give themselves permission to ask for what they need or want, to say no, and to act effectively.

When you go to a sports game and the home team starts to lose, you may notice that the cheer squad on the sidelines begins to cheer harder and louder. They do this in order to pump their team up and encourage them to feel confident and to follow through. This being said, when we start to lose at something as individuals, we might talk ourselves into catastrophizing versus cheering louder inside our own heads.

If you’re following along with one of our Couch to 5K training plans this summer/fall, we’re here today to encourage you to cheer for yourselves harder and louder when self-doubt starts to creep in. You are capable of more than you think you are!

Some common examples of cheerleading self-statements might include:

  • I can tolerate it if it takes me longer to do my workout today than it did to do the same workout last week. I may be tired or otherwise vulnerable, and I’m still doing the best that I can. That is enough.
  • It takes a strong person to admit that they need help from someone else, and then ask for it.
  • If I say no to people who ask me to make plans this weekend and they get angry, it doesn’t mean I should have said yes. It’s okay that I prioritized alone time for my own self-care and rest this weekend.
  • I can still feel good about myself and my efforts even if I haven’t reached my ultimate goal.
  • This is really hard, and I can do hard things.

Yours in community and health,

The MCC Couch to 5K Wellness Program Planning Team

Morgan Kennell
Counseling Center & Disability Services
09/01/2021